Zainab’s father not allowed to react after daughter’s killer was caught

We caught him. Yes, our agencies, our police force, Chief Justice of Pakistan and the forensic department did it. They all worked together willfully and found Zainab’s culprit. For some reason this time it seemed it would be different, that justice would be delivered but we still wait for the courts to decide upon the punishment. Every single person in the country wants him to be hanged in public.

But as I write this now at 11:45 pm, I came across something extremely sickening while watching the press conference on the Internet.

He is also suffering in silence like every other man in our society where it is believed that if a man cries he is not a man – Or you must have heard a very typical question asked from men, “Are you man enough?”

Chief Minister Punjab, Shehbaz Sharif, and his other political workers along with Zainab’s father held a press conference about catching the perpetrator. And what I saw while watching that press conference is that all those politicians burst into laughter. And Zainab’s father, a man who has always been dignified and composed, is looking at them as if he’s asking them what’s so funny? Do you guys even have a heart? I am pretty certain what I saw on that man’s face was just disappointment and distress.

Since Zainab’s parents came back to Pakistan, I am observing her father and his expressions – and they are always the same. He never smiled, he never got angry, he never yelled, he never shed a single tear. I am amazed at how he’s keeping his emotions in control. The way he looks amazingly composed makes me feel as if he is content and at peace with God’s will.

Zainab’s pictures didn’t really move me. Yes, I was upset for days because I wanted the murderer to get caught and every passing day my faith in our system was getting weaker. But what moved me were this man’s pictures and his great composure. Looking at him every time, gave me chills down my spine.

Same might be the case with Zainab’s father too. He might not be comfortable crying or even talking to anyone about how he feels really for the fear of being mocked. Or for the fear of being considered weak.

His wife (Zainab’s mother) on the other hand cried, yelled and made noise. She expressed her anger, aggression, pain and agony but her husband continued to keep it all inside. He wanted to talk at the press conference, he wanted to say something when Shehbaz Sharif turned his mic off and ended the press conference. So the father, whose young girl was brutally raped and murdered, wanted to say something but wasn’t allowed to by the province’s Chief Minister.

The conduct of Shehbaz Sharif and his fellow party members in the press conference is highly condemnable and inappropriate. They were not at a circus but were sitting next to a man whose daughter was raped, murdered and found dumped in a trash heap. Shehbaz Sharif to me looked scared and paranoid that Zainab’s father might say something or put him in an awkward position otherwise what could possibly be the reason for stopping Zainab’s father from talking at a press conference that was arranged for him and his daughter.

Women make noise and let it out of their systems, whereas men mostly suffer in silence. What happened to Zainab is not something easy for a father to talk about to anyone. We have often heard people say being a woman in South Asian society is challenging but being a man in South Asian society is equally challenging.

This piece of mine is dedicated to all those men who have stayed strong in every situation where they were broken from within and were about to collapse. Guys! Its okay for everyone to shed a few tears once in a while to feel human

Poor men cannot even cry. No matter how broken and hurt they might feel, how vulnerable they might feel and how bad they really want to cry, they just can’t. Wait, can a man even be vulnerable? This is what half of you must be thinking. Especially in Pakistan where being solid, strong, loud, angry and grumpy are the adjectives associated with being manly. Hence men cannot cry.

Same might be the case with Zainab’s father too. He might not be comfortable crying or even talking to anyone about how he feels really for the fear of being mocked. Or for the fear of being considered weak.

So the father, whose young girl was brutally raped and murdered, wanted to say something, but wasn’t allowed to by the province’s Chief Minister.

He is also suffering in silence like every other man in our society where it is believed that if a man cries he is not a man – Or you must have heard a very typical question asked from men, “Are you man enough?”

Men are human too. They can cry and still be brave. They can reach out and ask for help and still be strong. This piece of mine is dedicated to all those men who have stayed strong in every situation where they were broken from within and were about to collapse. Guys! Its okay for everyone to shed a few tears once in a while to feel human and its okay to feel vulnerable and emotional just like women.

Shiffa Yousafzai is a freelance writer; She is an International Alumni Ambassador for Manchester Metropolitan University, UK, where she studied Multimedia Journalism. Earlier, she graduated with business and marketing at Air University, Islamabad. She had been vice-president Air University Cultural Society; She is a singer and has performed in cultural events. Shiffa could be followed on twitter @Shiffa_ZY and on facebook @Shiffa Z. Yousafzai. The views expressed in this article are authors own and do not necessiraly reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.

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